


Hunting in the Dark

by kiki_92



Category: Tom Clancy's Rainbow Six (Video Games)
Genre: Blood and Injury, Fluff, Horror, Hurt/Comfort, Inspired by Fanart, Kissing, Love Confessions, M/M, Monsters
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-05-14
Updated: 2020-05-14
Packaged: 2021-03-02 19:34:51
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 8,014
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24182197
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/kiki_92/pseuds/kiki_92
Summary: Tachanka and Kapkan are sent to investigate a supposed White Mask hideout, but they never expected the building to be rigged and end up trapped in the abandoned bunker.  The worst part is that they aren't alone down there, something else is lurking in the dark corridors...
Relationships: Maxim "Kapkan" Basuda/Alexsandr "Tachanka" Senaviev
Comments: 16
Kudos: 55





	Hunting in the Dark

**Author's Note:**

> For [OjiiSan](https://twitter.com/OjiiSan01).
> 
> This fic is based on one of OjiiSan's amazing pieces of art, [this one](https://twitter.com/OjiiSan01/status/1245258475401142274) which I always found it very intriguing. Please check it out!!
> 
> And as always, thanks to the amazing [ToDragons](https://archiveofourown.org/users/ToDragons/pseuds/ToDragons) for fixing my mistakes and giving me ideas on how to improve the story <3

He was not alone. In the oppressive darkness of the underground corridors, where even the beam of his torchlight wasn’t enough to give him a clear view of the room, Kapkan had the irrational feeling that he was being observed.

There was no one down here except him and Tachanka, he knew that. Still, Kapkan had learnt long ago to trust his instincts; they had saved his life more than once, and his thoughts were screaming at him to get the fuck out of there  _ now _ . That was impossible though, not when the debris had buried the only entry point, and therefore only exit from this hellhole…

A clinking sound, like a pebble falling down to the ground, made him turn around. Sweeping the flashlight over the room revealed nothing, but the sense of unease didn’t disappear. This place was making him jumpy. Or perhaps it was the knowledge of being trapped underground in a White Mask hideout. It was abandoned, that much was clear, but Kapkan worried about another possible explosion, like the one that trapped them here in the first place. Who knew what those bastards had left lying around, the whole place could be rigged and they wouldn’t know until it was too late.

Another noise, coming from the far corner of the room. The feeling of imminent danger was higher than ever, reminding Kapkan of that one time he had a pack of wolves chasing him. He took a step closer, gripping the flashlight tightly in one hand and his gun in the other. A high-pitched squeak made him turn around, pointing the flashlight at the source of the sound. It was just a rat scurrying between pieces of debris. The sensation of being observed didn’t vanish though.

“Hey Max, come here!” Tachanka bellowed, the sound carrying in the total silence despite Tachanka being several rooms away from where Kapkan was.

With one last look around the dark room, Kapkan went back to the corridor. The lack of electricity in this underground facility was annoying, especially when he stumbled on a pile of rubble and rocks he would have seen if everything wasn’t pitch dark. A cold feeling went down his spine, and Kapkan tried to convince himself he was just being paranoid. There was nobody here but him and Tachanka. He retraced his steps until he saw a bright point in the distance, no doubt from Tachanka’s own flashlight. 

“Did you find anything interesting?” He asked, stepping into yet another dark room. 

“Depends on your definition of interesting.”

Tachanka’s flashlight combed slowly over the middle of the room, showing Kapkan what he found. There was a long table full of broken pieces of glass that at some point must have been various flasks and beakers, a smashed computer and papers that had turned illegible after being exposed to excessive humidity for far too long. In the middle of the room, a metal gurney was surrounded by scattered medical tools on the floor, and most disturbingly, rust colored splatters everywhere. Whatever happened here, it hadn’t been pleasant.

The two Spetsnaz looked at each other and then at the trail of dried blood leading from the middle of the room to what supposedly had been another exit. However, the wall and part of the ceiling had crumbled down, and now all there remained was a landslide of dirt and debris. It worried Kapkan how the explosion had rattled and affected the entire bunker like that, since this spot was far away from their entry point. Maybe the building wasn’t as structurally sound as it should and could collapse at any moment. Wonderful.

“I suppose this used to be a White Mask hideout after all,” Kapkan said, pointing at the scalpels and other instruments on the floor. He would bet those dark stains on them weren’t rust.

“They aren’t the only terrorist group out there, nor the only ones torturing people,” Tachanka reminded him. “But at least we know the intel wasn’t complete shit.”

It was a small mercy, Kapkan supposed. He’d be more angry if Harry sent them to the back end of nowhere of their home country for nothing. However, Valkyrie’s intel was never wrong, even if this facility seemed to be long abandoned for some reason. A loud clanging sound caught their attention, coming from the black recesses of the never ending corridor that connected all the rooms.

“It’s coming from the end you explored,” Tachanka pointed out.

The only things Kapkan found back there were dust, debris and a rat, but whatever was making that noise was much bigger than any common vermin. Flashlight held high, he ventured back, Tachanka following him. As they got closer to the room he had been inspecting when Tachanka called him, Kapkan noticed a faint smell that hadn’t been there before. It was the stench of decaying flesh. A wet crunch echoed in the dark room as they entered, making his hair stand on end.

Twin beams of light swept over the room, searching for the source of that noise. At first they saw nothing. Tachanka took a few steps forward and his flashlight became fixed on one spot, and then Kapkan saw it. Whatever it was, it wasn't human. That thing had greyish skin, making it blend with the mouldy concrete walls, hiding behind a big chunk of debris that had once been part of the ceiling. It was bloated like a drowned corpse, and much taller and bulkier than either him or Tachanka. But the feature that had Kapkan staring in horror was its mouth, impossibly wide and full of jagged teeth. The creature was chewing a human arm, or more accurately the remains of one, mostly gnawed bone and a few strips of flesh still clinging to it. That thing in front of them cracked the bone between its teeth, its horrifically long tongue lapping up the dark and putrid bone marrow.

The monster, for there was no other word to describe it, stared right at them and let the gnawed and broken arm fall to the floor. Both Spetsnaz were frozen in place in their shock. It was hungry, Kapkan would bet, but he had no intention of being its next meal. He wanted to take out his gun, but as soon as he started to slowly move his hand to grab it, the creature lashed out. For being such a big thing, it moved startlingly fast. It broke the piece of fallen ceiling that had been acting as half-cover like it was made of paper, and Kapkan shoved Tachanka aside from the monster’s path. 

Pain bloomed on his side and leg, and the hunter desperately fumbled to get his knife. The creature’s jaws applied more and more pressure on his leg, to the point he feared the bone would snap. Desperate and blinded by the pain, Kapkan stabbed it wildly, not caring what he struck as long as he drew blood. His first idea had been to pluck its eyes out, but the monster didn’t seem to have eyes. Then how the hell did it know where they were? The pressure on his leg got worse and Kapkan screamed  _ “Sasha!” _ ; whether it was a cry for help or a warning for his comrade to save himself, he didn’t know.

The shot echoed uncomfortably in the confined space, followed by the deafening growl of the creature. Although the knife hadn’t been able to penetrate its thick, leathery hide, the bullets from Tachanka’s PMM hurt it enough to make it bleed. The sensation of all those sharp teeth releasing his leg reminded Kapkan of that one mishap with Frost’s new prototype of her Welcome Mat, only a thousand times worse. The abomination took a step back, and from the floor Kapkan noticed how oddly shaped its legs were for a bipedal creature, it was a miracle it stood on two legs like that. 

As soon as the creature retreated a few steps, Tachanka dragged him away and up. Standing on his wounded and bleeding leg took some effort on his part, but as soon as the beast made a motion towards them, Kapkan ignored the flare of pain and started running along Tachanka, who still hadn’t let go of his hand. With just one flashlight faintly illuminating their path, since Kapkan lost his during the scuffle with the creature, they took a winding path across several rooms, until they were sure that thing wasn’t breathing down their necks anymore. The creature was fast, but it didn’t seem to have much endurance for chasing them, thank goodness.

_ _ _

They took refuge in a random room, one with more than a single entrance to not get trapped if the creature found them. Kapkan wanted to put some sort of trap on the doorways, to slow down the monster and give them a little breather to react, but there was nothing around to fashion an improvised trap. Everything would be easier if he carried some of his trademark EDDs, but this was supposed to be a quick recon mission on a recently abandoned hideout, so their equipment had been light. No traps nor Tachanka’s LMG, no weapons except for pistols. He had a single C4 charge, but after the explosion that buried the main exit, Kapkan feared any additional explosion might collapse the whole building. They were fucked.

Tachanka cleaned up and bandaged Kapkan’s leg to the best of his ability, but he was no Doc and they both knew it. Neither of them said it out loud, but Kapkan needed antibiotics and most probably stitches. Since they could get none of those things down here, they sat on the ground, watching the room’s entrances, ready to bolt out or shoot if the creature approached their position. For now, it seemed they were safe. Kapkan had his leg still over Tachanka’s, just as he’d been while the older defender tended to his wound. The only difference was that they had turned off the flashlight to preserve the battery.

“We should have contacted Harry hours ago,” Tachanka commented. It was a blatant attempt to instill some hope. After all, Harry would have noticed their disappearance already probably, and would be cobbling another team to find what happened to them. However, it only reminded Kapkan of how their radios were not working, probably because the signal didn’t reach that far underground.

“Have you realised we always get the suckiest missions?” Kapkan wondered aloud. “This, New Mexico, Bartlett… How come Shuhrat has only been in one of those?”

“He’s the smartest of us,” Tachanka snorted in amusement, putting his arm around Kapkan and bringing him closer. “Rest, I’ll keep watch, in case that thing comes back.”

A complaint about how he could do more than just sleep almost left Kapkan’s lips, but in truth, they had nothing to do. They had already explored the building and found nothing except for that abomination, and trying to move the rubble blocking the exit would be impossible. So yes, they had nothing to do but wait for someone to come for them. He sighed in defeat.

“Fine. I’ll do the second turn and then you sleep.” Kapkan rested his head on his friend’s shoulder, Tachanka’s big palm pressed against his side, pushing him even closer. 

The close contact was comforting in its own way, a reassurance, and Kapkan allowed himself to relax for the first time since they entered this bunker. The warmth radiating from Tachanka and the way he was cradling him made the situation almost cozy, although it would be much better if they were in a soft bed, snuggled close and without a care in the world. Noticing the dangerous path his thoughts were taking, Kapkan was grateful for the complete darkness that hid his heated face. There was no need to make this awkward, he blamed the weird situation they were in for how his thoughts ran wild like that. 

_ _ _

Kapkan woke up to a cold and empty spot next to him. Reaching out blindly, he found nothing. 

“Sasha?” His voice echoed in the vast space, but there was no answer. That wasn’t a good sign.

Getting up required a considerable effort, since the wound burned and he couldn’t put much weight on that leg. Something warm was trickling down his shin, making the bandages get sticky, and Kapkan was sure the wound had reopened. He would deal with that later. Right now he only cared about finding Tachanka.

First thing now was to solve the problem of being left in the dark. Blindly going through all his pouches, Kapkan eventually wrapped his fingers around a short tube. Chemical light sticks. He counted only three of them, but that was better than nothing. A dim green light suffused the room, the shadows still clinging close, but now Kapkan could see.

The first odd detail he noticed were the strange additions on both entryways to the room: a broken down auxiliary table in one of them, and a few short metal beams scattered in front of the other. Why did Tachanka do this? A few seconds later, Kapkan realised that if the creature tried to come through any of that, it would make noise, so perhaps Tachanka had taken to heart his earlier ramblings about how good it would be to put traps in their perimeter. Not the best implementation, but Kapkan had to admit it was a creative solution with what little materials they had at hand.

Slowly, he limped his way down the corridor, checking every room for signs of Tachanka or what could have happened to him. He had to be fine, and when Kapkan found him, he would wring Tachanka’s neck for making him worry like this. He was inspecting the third room he’d come across when he heard it, a quiet wheezing coming from his left. A second later, he also identified some heavy footsteps that got closer and closer. It definitely wasn’t Tachanka. Shit.

His options were limited, Kapkan knew it. With his injured leg, he was too slow to outrun the beast, and limping like that he made too much noise to sneak away. Shooting at it was an option, but he preferred to keep it as a backup plan, because he wasn’t sure the bullets would do much. Yesterday, when Tachanka shot at it, the creature made a growl of pain but otherwise seemed to shrug off any damage. The best option was to hide, then.

Kapkan threw the glow stick to the ground, to not give away his position, but close enough to still be able to see some things. From what he had seen, that thing didn’t appear to have eyes, but he didn’t want to take any risks. Maybe it had eyes after all, or it could detect light in some other way. Looking around, Kapkan saw a mouldy couch and decided to hide behind it and wait.

The footsteps were alarmingly close now, the creature most certainly was in the room with him, but Kapkan didn’t dare move and take a peek. The bite wound throbbed and burned, pain going up his leg with every heartbeat, and Kapkan was seriously regretting his decision to crouch. He moved the leg just a little, to ease the pressure on it, and the boot made a small scraping sound against the floor.

Everything was quiet for a moment, a sense of expectancy shrouding the room. A massive shadow blocked the slight amount of light the glow stick emitted, then Kapkan heard it sniffing the air. It sounded like the creature was right there, only a withered old couch between them. Judging by the wet noise he just heard, Kapkan would bet that thing was licking something from the floor. It was fascinating how it seemed to rely mostly on smell, following the trail of… Blood. An icy shiver went down Kapkan’s spine, along with the horrible certainty there was no escape. His wound was bleeding and the creature was tracking him and now licking whatever droplets of blood had fallen to the ground, Kapkan was sure. It seemed he was about to discover how effective bullets would be against that monstrosity.

“Maxim!” The distant cry caught both Kapkan’s attention and the creature’s. 

The relief of knowing Tachanka was fine was short-lived. It was soon replaced with dread, as the beast stomped loudly around before dashing away, presumably in search of Kapkan’s idiot friend, who kept yelling his name. Damn it.

Without stopping to think which would be the best course of action, Kapkan cracked another glow stick and rushed to find Tachanka. He would not leave Sasha alone with that monster. Barely outside the room, he heard a loud crash, something metallic colliding against the walls. Probably the auxiliary table Tachanka put on the corridor as a proximity alarm of sorts. Its seems that idea worked as intended. Kapkan clenched his teeth and ignored the pain and how his leg faltered every few steps, as he was running down the corridor as fast as he could. 

Two shots rang in the dark, followed by an inhuman snarl. He arrived in time to see how the beast charged against Tachanka, throwing the older defender against the wall like he was a ragdoll. Tachanka’s flashlight fell to the floor and rolled around, creating strange shadows around the room, but Kapkan wasn’t even paying attention to that. When the monster attacked Tachanka, he saw red. How dare that fucking thing hurt Sasha! Lifting his arm and shooting was instinctive, Kapkan wasn’t even fully aware of what he was doing. He emptied the whole magazine, a grim satisfaction blooming inside him when the creature howled in pain.

Instead of attacking Tachanka while he got up from the ground, the beast turned around and fixed its eyeless head on him, maw open in a deafening growl. Kapkan was glad the dim lighting spared him a clear view of its jagged rows of teeth and disturbingly long tongue. It charged against him while Kapkan was still reloading his gun, and he jumped to the side to avoid getting trampled. His injured leg didn’t stand the strain and buckled, sending him face-first to the floor.

However, before he could even roll over or finish reloading, Tachanka was up again and firing against the creature too. It took a few steps back, not daring to come closer as long as the bullets kept coming. The hesitation lasted a few seconds, then it retreated with a final snarl, its heavy stomping getting dimmer as it disappeared in the darkness of the corridor. Hopefully, it would go away to lick its wounds and give them some respite.

Tachanka was immediately at his side, flashlight again in his hand and blinding Kapkan. “Where the fuck were you?”

“Me? Where the fuck were you!” Kapkan shot back, covering his eyes from the light and scowling at his friend. 

The flashlight was pressed into his hands, Tachanka crouching by his side and simply telling Kapkan to keep it focused on his leg. He kept watching the corridor, the finally reloaded pistol in his other hand as he waited to see if the creature came back to finish them. It did not. In the meantime, Tachanka fussed over his leg, trying to stop the bleeding and putting new bandages on it.

“I was by the collapsed exit,” Tachanka’s voice was not made for whispers, even when he was talking in a low tone it boomed.

“Don’t tell me you were trying to dig a way out,” Kapkan mocked him, hissing in pain when Tachanka gently dabbed the blood from the bite wound. He dared to take a peek and it did not look good, but then again he had worse, didn’t he?

“There was someone on the radio,” Tachanka explained. “Couldn’t understand much of the message, so I went to the highest point of this underground hell.”

It made sense, Kapkan would have done the same. “Who was it?”

“No idea. I don’t even know if my message was heard.”

It wasn’t an encouraging idea, but whatever slim hope it offered was welcomed. They knew eventually Harry would start looking for them, it could be already happening for all they knew, and the idea of a rescue made staying down here in the dark with a monster more bearable.

“We can’t stay here,” Kapkan said. “That thing followed me in the dark because of the blood trail I left, we… It knows where we are, it’s not safe remaining here.”

“Makes sense,” by his tone of voice, it was clear Tachanka didn’t like what he was hearing. Kapkan privately agreed, the image of that creature following him and licking the trail of his blood off the floor made his skin crawl. Tachanka finished wrapping the bandages on Kapkan’s leg. “Let’s move then. Come on, jump on my back.”

“Absolutely not!”

“Max, I’m not joking around. You either get a piggyback ride or I’ll carry you like a princess, your choice.”

“You lift me up and I’ll kick you in the stomach,” Kapkan’s threat would have been a lot more credible if one of his legs wasn’t a mess Tachanka had just re-bandaged. It stung his pride, the idea of getting carried, like he was a child or completely useless. He knew Tachanka would not budge, stubborn as he was, but Kapkan tried a different argument. “You got thrown against the wall hard enough that your helmet is dented. Carrying me will only hurt you more.”

Tachanka took out his helmet, and Kapkan saw that not only it was dented, there were deep gouges in there from the beast’s claws, some chunks of metal missing from the visor. A sliver of horror nestled in his chest; holy shit, that had been a close call.

“You said that thing can follow the smell of your blood, and if you walk you’ll bleed again. So pick how you prefer to be carried or I’ll choose for you.”

He hated it when Tachanka was right. Heaving an aggravated sigh, Kapkan made his choice. 

Riding on Tachanka’s back wasn’t nearly as terrible as he made it out to be, although Kapkan winced in guilt when Tachanka made a pained grunt upon standing up. The hunter carried the flashlight and illuminated their way, since both of Tachanka’s hands were occupied grasping Kapkan’s thighs and ensuring he wouldn’t fall. 

It was comfortable being pressed against Tachanka’s broad back, hands resting on his shoulders. Almost like giving a hug… Tired as he was, Kapkan couldn’t help letting his head rest against Tachanka’s. It was comforting, and besides, it would be just for a moment, until he stopped feeling lightheaded...

_ _ _

He awoke to complete darkness, but this time he wasn’t alone. His back was reclined against someone’s chest, two arms holding him in place. Kapkan wanted to ask what happened, but all he managed was a slurred “What..?”

“Welcome back, sleeping beauty.” Tachanka pressed something cool to his lips, and it took a few seconds for Kapkan’s brain to register he wasn’t wearing his face wrap anymore. “Drink.”

He needn’t be told twice. Taking the water bottle from Tachanka, he took a deep, greedy gulp of the cool liquid. It was the best thing he tasted in his life, or maybe he just thought so because he was parched and feeling overly hot. In fact, remembering they were still trapped underground and they needed to ration the water, he drank less than he would have wanted.

“How are you feeling?” Tachanka asked, taking his other arm away from Kapkan’s middle and making the hunter miss its presence. “You fucking fainted on me, do you remember that?”

Kapkan grunted in answer, avoiding to confirm that he didn’t remember much. “Where are we?”

“At the exit, if someone comes looking around we’ll hear it.” It was a long shot, but right now Kapkan would rather cling to hope.

“Look at that, you have good ideas sometimes.”

Tachanka laughed, the sound jarringly loud in the dark, declaring Kapkan was definitely feeling better if he had the energy to insult him. They settled into silence again, not knowing what else to say. Tachanka put his arms around Kapkan, grabbing one of the hunter’s hands between his. Kapkan tried to relax, but he was hyper aware of how they were sitting, his back pressed flush against Tachanka’s front. It felt startlingly intimate, and so disturbingly similar to a certain fantasy Kapkan sometimes indulged in. He had half a mind to pinch himself, just to ascertain if he was dreaming or not.

A blood-curdling growl echoed in the tunnel, the sound bouncing in the dark in a way that made it impossible to tell if the creature was close or not. Tachanka tightened his hold on Kapkan in a clearly protective gesture, even though there was no actual danger where they were. Probably. That nightmarish beast was still out there, and Kapkan could safely say it was more dangerous than any other predator he’d ever seen. It shouldn’t even exist, like the creatures they had seen in New Mexico. Kapkan had always prided himself in being a hunter, not a mindless savage that killed everything in his path, yet that thing needed to be annihilated.

“Perhaps we could open the exit... You have a C4 charge, don’t you?” Tachanka’s deep voice pulled Kapkan out of his thoughts.

His first instinct was to tell Tachanka he was a moron. It was a supremely bad idea, and the fact he was thinking about it didn’t bode well, but the promise of sweet freedom and open spaces was a tempting poison. In the end, he was forced to acknowledge reality though. 

“It would only bury us in more debris, or collapse the building on top of us.” Kapkan stopped for a moment, pondering what he just said. “That actually could work.”

“I don’t know, your reason for why it was a bad idea was very convincing.”

“Not for us, for that  _ thing  _ out there!” Kapkan rushed to explain, feeling excited he might have found a solution to their problem. “If the explosion doesn’t kill it, getting crushed by the rubble will do it.” An expectant silence ensued, but no answer came from Tachanka. It was a risky plan, but it could work, and Kapkan was determined to make his bullheaded friend see reason. “I need to work on the-”

Tachanka’s hand was hastily clapped over his mouth, silencing him. The heavy footsteps coming from the corridor quickly clued him in about why Tachanka had done that. It seemed they had been talking too loud, which prompted the beast to come investigate. Either that, or it was actively searching for them, to finish them off. 

The noise was coming closer, and they waited in silence, even trying to not breathe too hard. Unlike the other close encounter Kapkan had with it, the creature was making occasional low groans now, as if in pain. Maybe they had managed to injure it, and Kapkan could only rejoice at the idea. That meant it was weak, or at least weaker than before, and thus it should be easier to kill it. If it didn’t find them now, of course, unprepared and cornered as they were.

With his heart going so fast as if to escape from his ribcage, Kapkan squeezed Tachanka’s hand while the creature sniffed around, dangerously close to where they were hiding. It would be so easy for that thing to step into this room, and they wouldn’t even notice until it was too late. After a perceived eternity, but in reality it was only a few seconds, the noises started to become more distant as the beast stalked away. Still tense and wary, neither of them relaxed yet.

“Think about how to make it work,” Tachanka said in a low whisper near his ear. “We will kill that thing.”   
_ _ _

They were back to the room that had been their camp for a time. 

The flashlight illuminated a black patch on the floor, confirming Kapkan’s suspicions that the creature was wounded. However, there was no other trace of it for now. They would have to delve deeper into the corridor. In the drowning silence they kept, the tunnel seemed to go on forever.

Walking next to Tachanka was agony, and not only because of the pain flaring up his leg despite their slow pace. No, it was because Tachanka had his arm around Kapkan’s waist, helping him walk and keeping him close, and thoroughly distracting the hunter just with his presence. It was infuriating how little it took to set Kapkan off balance, more preoccupied with the feeling of Tachanka’s hot palm pressing against him than with their current situation. He felt dizzy and short on air, yet he wasn’t sure if it was a physical symptom or just another way his mind overreacted to Tachanka’s closeness. At least he did not insist on carrying him around this time, although Kapkan suspected that meant his back hurt worse than Tachanka was willing to admit.

The further they ventured into the dark, the more tense they were, the silence suffocating them, yet neither dared speak since the beast had to be close by. However, as they reached the end of the corridor there was still no sign of it. In this last room the smell of decaying meat was unmistakable, and after a quick search, they found the source of it.

Nestled away in a corner was what could only be defined as a nest of sorts, but perhaps that was just an illusion created by the pieces of fabric strewn all over and the array of gnawed bones poking around, not dissimilar to a twisted version of pieces of straw padding a nest. It was impossible to tell how many bodies were part of this macabre pile, since they were all in pieces, but at least now they know where the terrorists disappeared to. The most grisly part was a full torso with its head still attached, a smooth plastic mask covering the victim’s face. The terrorists certainly deserved a punishment for what they did, but this? This was way too cruel. Being torn to pieces or eaten alive by that thing was a horror Kapkan would not even wish on the White Masks. 

However, despite the shudder going through him at the idea of how they too could end up like this, Kapkan’s practicality won over such depressing thoughts. This was as far from the entrance as it got, and it seemed to be the creature’s lair. Time to set up a trap.

“If we put the C4 up there, we just have to wait until-”

A muffled noise, like someone was shuffling around quietly, made Kapkan freeze. Before he could decide if he was just being paranoid or the creature was coming for them, there was a wet wheezing coming from behind them. They turned around, Tachanka’s flashlight sweeping slowly over the decrepit scenery until it landed on the monster, blocking the entrance. Apparently Kapkan had underestimated its intelligence, since it had successfully ambushed them instead of the other way around. The stalemate lasted but a second, before the creature charged against them.

Both men jumped to the sides, and the creature’s maw closed over thin air. However, in the time it realised its mistake and turned around, Kapkan still hadn’t managed to get up from the floor. He blamed how difficult it was to move his injured leg and rely on it, and of course the beast noticed he was the weakest prey in the room, as any good hunter would. Well, Kapkan didn’t intend to go down without a fight, nor without giving Tachanka at least the chance to get away from here. 

Yet, before the creature could attack him, Tachanka grabbed a long piece of piping that was lying around and used it as a bat to whack the beast’s back. It wasn’t the most effective weapon, but it bought Kapkan a few precious seconds to get up and take a few steps back. Picking up the flashlight from the ground, he took out the C4 and moved to the entrance of the room. Tachanka was still hitting the creature with his improvised weapon, struggling to keep it at bay.

“Come on, throw it!” The momentary distraction meant that Tachanka was barely able to dodge the creature’s next bite. Fortunately, it only ripped away a piece of Tachanka’s sleeve instead of his arm, but it was a close call. “What are you waiting for!?”

Kapkan hesitated. Tachanka would be caught in the center of the blast, along with the beast. They only had one shot at this, but killing Tachanka just to get it done was unacceptable. In a flash of inspiration, Kapkan held the flashlight in the crook of his neck, while he used his now free hand to yank away the bandages on his leg. Wrapping the bloodied strips around the C4, he prayed this would work.

“Get out of the way Sasha, move!”

He didn’t throw the C4 until the other defender started running, the explosive making a pronounced arc mid-air before landing a little bit behind that monstrous abomination. Just as he hoped, the smell of blood proved to be irresistible for the creature. It turned around swiftly, falling for the bait and licking the bandage covered C4. Kapkan waited a few more seconds, until Tachanka was marginally closer to him, to detonate it.

The blast of the explosion threw Kapkan to the ground again, dust clouding the air and making it difficult to breathe. The world had gone silent except for the loud ringing in his ears, and his whole body hurt. Kapkan closed his eyes and opened them again, but it changed nothing; everything was pitch black.

He sat up, his head swimming from the effort it required. He tried calling out for Tachanka, but it was difficult to know if he was even able to speak when he heard nothing except a constant ringing sound. Light, he needed light. The last glow stick filled the surrounding area in a dim and sickly green light, but it was enough to see where Tachanka was.

Head swimming dangerously and his whole body aching at the sudden movement, Kapkan crawled through the debris to Tachanka’s side. He seemed unharmed, but it was difficult to tell, especially because he wasn’t moving. Kapkan kept repeating,  _ “If you’re dead I’ll never forgive you,” _ despite the fact that he couldn’t hear anything and neither would Tachanka. He had a pulse, much to Kapkan’s relief, and taking out his balaclava and slapping him did the trick to get him to open his eyes.

Once the initial confusion vanished, Tachanka latched onto him, cupping Kapkan’s jaw with one hand and looking at him in a way that made the hunter feel terribly choked up. Tachanka was saying something, lips moving out but no sound registering for Kapkan. He leaned into the touch, basking into the warmth of the contact. Then he threw caution to the wind and wrapped his arms around Tachanka, pinning him down in a desperate hug because holy shit, they survived.

The hug was short-lived, since Tachanka pushed him away with a grimace. Confusion and hurt bubbled in his chest at the abrupt rejection of a simple friendly hug, until he saw the arm Tachanka was trying to show him. It was bent oddly, yet at least the bone wasn’t poking out, so that was good. It had been naïve to think anyone could come away completely unscathed from such an explosion, and while a broken limb was worrying, it definitely counted as a miracle if that was the extent of Tachanka’s injuries.

They made a pitiful sight, both injured and barely able to stand up, deaf to everything and with only a measly glow stick to see where they were. But they were both alive, and they would take care of each other as they always did.

With the remaining flashlight gone too, lost or broken during the explosion, their only source of light was the little glow stick. Once the euphoria of surviving and knowing they got rid of a dangerous monster died down, the pain and weariness came back tenfold. Making their way back to the other end of the facility was a grueling process, only made bearable because of Tachanka’s solid presence by his side. He suspected the feeling was mutual, or at least he hoped so.

Their progress was so slow that by the time they reached their destination, the glow stick had died out completely. Patching each other in the dark would be impossible, so they didn’t bother. Instead, the two of them just sat on the ground, backs against the nearest wall they found, and waited. There was nothing else they could do. 

Kapkan realised that by all rights he should be starving, but that wasn’t the case. No hunger at all. Maybe it was for the best, since they had no food and were rationing the water. Eventually, the silence became too much for them.

“We made it.” The ringing in his ears had subsided, yet still Kapkan heard Tachanka’s voice slightly muffled. 

“Yes. Although I could have blown you up along with the creature,” worry crept into his voice, unbidden and uninvited, like the _ what ifs _ it brought with it.

“You did what you had to do.” Tachanka’s words were both an absolution and a reminder. Then, in a softer tone he added, “And it ended well. Seems like you’re both princess and monster slayer.”

“Shut up,” Kapkan chuckled, surprising himself with his reaction. He had no idea how much time they spent trapped down here, around a day probably, yet it felt like he hadn’t laughed in years.

It was impossible to tell how fast or slow time went by, suspended in that strange limbo as they were. The only certainty was that the longer they spent in total darkness, the more they gravitated closer to each other. After a time, they ended irremediably tangled together. Tachanka’s good arm was around Kapkan’s shoulders, and the hunter rested his head on the other man’s chest, arms wrapped around his middle and his injured leg over Tachanka’s. 

It was the most comfortable he’d been since this whole debacle started, despite his injuries, and Kapkan found himself dozing off. From this point onwards, his memories blurred together, an amalgam without order.

He remembered Tachanka exclaiming he was burning up, his hand feeling like a cool balm on Kapkan’s forehead. He might have been given more water to drink, or had that been before? Impossible to tell.

Amidst his disconnected thoughts, Kapkan realised he had a fever because the bite wound was infected. Perhaps that was also the reason for his tenuous grasp on consciousness… or was that due to blood loss? Strange how nothing of that did really elicit much of a reaction from him. He didn’t have enough energy to care. 

Doc’s voice awoke him from the clutches of unconsciousness, but Kapkan thought that must have been a hallucination, since he was still stranded in the dark. 

Tachanka said something, but Kapkan barely understood a word. And why was he speaking in English? They always spoke Russian to each other…

_ “Hear that? We’re getting out of here.” _

That would be so nice, to finally feel the sun and the wind in his face again. It was difficult to believe at the moment, especially when Kapkan could swear he felt the wound bleeding, something warm and sticking trickling down his shin. Why didn’t it stop already, what was wrong with him? A terrible thought crossed his mind.

“Sasha,” he gasped out with some effort, after a few failed attempts. “That monster was unnatural, we don’t know… what if it was like those things? In New Mexico. I don’t want to turn, promise me you-”

The arm around his shoulders brought him closer to Tachanka’s chest. “Nothing will happen to you Max, I promise.”

It was like a spell dissipated all of Kapkan’s worries, relief washing over him as he snuggled against Tachanka. His breathing was still agitated and his head swam even when he was completely motionless, but Kapkan felt safe and protected. He trusted Tachanka with his life, without hesitation.

“I’m glad it’s you who is here with me. I… you’ve always been there for me, sometimes even before I knew I needed you,” Kapkan sighed, the warmth from the embrace making his head spin. If he felt so hot, why couldn't he stop shivering? “Can’t imagine my life without you, and being in your arms feels so good Sasha, I should have... I want to know what kissing you feels like, or having your hands all over me, and waking up by your side. It would be a dream come true…”

Kapkan had no idea what made him say all that, but he felt better afterwards. After all, it was only the truth, and Tachanka deserved to know. 

“You know I’m a rather old fashioned man,” Tachanka replied, and Kapkan wasn’t really surprised to hear that. It was still disappointing, though. “How about I take you out on a date first, hm?”

The noise Kapkan made was half a chuckle and half a choked whimper, happiness and disbelief tinting his world. In a moment of lucidity, he realized this must be a fever dream. There was no way his dear Sasha would agree so easily, right? Yet Kapkan didn’t care. If he was going to die down here, he would take his comfort wherever he could get it.

“Home date, I don’t like going out that much.”

Tachanka laughed, and Kapkan felt the vibrations spreading to him. “Deal. What do you want me to cook for you,  _ princess _ ?”

However, Kapkan never gave his answer. Darkness finally claimed his thoughts, and he fell unconscious with a smile on his lips.   
_ _ _

Next time he opened his eyes, the first thing Kapkan noticed was the insane amount of light in the room. He blinked, his eyes slowly getting used to the brightness, and looked around.

Pristine walls, crisp bed sheets, and an IV drip attached to his arm. There was no doubt, he was in the infirmary. Was this a dream? Or had the dream been those confusing memories he had? It was difficult to tell, and Kapkan decided there was only one way to know. He took off the needle from his arm and sat on the bed. His leg was bandaged, this time properly and not the barely holding on mess Tachanka did, yet Kapkan felt no pain when moving. He didn’t feel feverish anymore either. Perhaps he should try to find someone and get some answers on what the hell happened.

The door opened and Tachanka strode in, holding a coffee in his right hand, since the left arm was immobilized in a cast. Tachanka smiled upon seeing Kapkan was awake, and he got a funny feeling in the pit of his stomach, remembering pieces and bits of a rather incoherent love confession. Right now, he had trouble separating what was an actual memory and what wasn’t.

“You finally woke up, took you long enough,” Tachanka left the coffee on a nearby table and slapped his back, his hand lingering on Kapkan’s shoulder for a few precious seconds. Then the hand was gone, leaving a cold void where it had been resting, and Tachanka sat on the chair next to his bed. “Doc was starting to worry, but don’t let that fool you, he’s still angry with us.”

“When isn’t Doc angry?” Kapkan shrugged, because honestly, it wasn’t like they got injured willingly. “How did we get here? I don’t remember much.”

“There isn’t much to tell. The rescue team came, Doc cleaned and cured your wound, pumped you full of meds and yelled at me for doing a shit job of keeping you stable; then he fixed my arm.” It was a concise summary of the events for sure, and Kapkan couldn’t say he regretted missing any of that. However, Tachanka wasn’t done yet, merely stopping to take a sip from his coffee. “He also cursed your name several times for using explosives in such close quarters. I think we jumped out of the frying pan and into the fire.”

“I see you wasted no time throwing me under the bus, traitor.” Kapkan said drily, earning a laugh from Tachanka. “At least Doc isn’t trying to literally eat us alive.” 

It was strange to think back on their hellish experience down in that bunker, especially now that they were back home and surrounded by light and a familiar space. If they hadn’t seen it and felt all its horror first hand, Kapkan would dismiss the whole idea as ludicrous. An insidious idea lodged itself in the hunter’s mind.

“Sasha, are we sure it’s gone? Completely sure?”

Tachanka’s curt nod was reassuring. “Harry sent a team back there to retrieve samples. And Lera did some tests with your blood, she says it’s nothing like the things from New Mexico.”

Kapkan breathed easier after hearing that, and even his posture became less tense. He supposed now all that remained was to get back into the usual routine of living in the base, go back to normal. He also was now sure that his rambling confession had been a dream. Kapkan was slightly disappointed in himself for not daring to tell Tachanka the truth, not even when he thought he was dying, but at least he hadn’t fucked up his friendship with Tachanka. That had always been the main concern holding him back.

“We’re going to have a lot of free time until we’re cleared to go back to training,” Tachanka pointed out somewhat morosely. Neither of them liked sitting on their asses doing nothing, and in fact often pushed themselves too hard, too fast. Yet another reason for Doc to be angry at them. “We can use all that time to have that date we planned, and a few more too.”

Kapkan stared at him in horror. “What did you say?” 

“Well, you never finished telling me about it, but we can improvise,” Tachanka smirked at him. 

A hot fury surged in his gut, the perfect cover to hide that terribly vulnerable side he was always scared of letting anyone know of. Even if it was Tachanka. Maybe especially because it was him, and what he meant to Kapkan.

“No,” he hissed, feeling his face grow hot. “You don’t get to joke about this.”

“I am completely serious, Maxim.”

“Then prove it.” Despite the forceful tone of voice, they both knew it wasn’t a command but a plea.

Tachanka bolted up from the chair, as if he had been waiting for Kapkan to say that. In a heartbeat he was in front of him, towering over Kapkan before he bent down and pressed their lips together. The contact was everything Kapkan ever dared to imagine and more. Despite not being overly passionate nor hard, the kiss still made his whole body tingle with the insane amount of longing it ignited in him. Kapkan grasped a fistful of Tachanka’s uniform and yanked him closer, groaning in pure delight when Tachanka held the back of his head and deepened the kiss. A hot sensation of  _ want  _ spread under his skin, taking over him, and eventually forced Kapkan to pull apart, lest he got too carried away.

“Had I known you were so eager, I would have tried this a long time ago,” Tachanka’s smugness made him scowl, but it was quickly chased away with another kiss.

If this was only a taste of what he could look forward to, Kapkan couldn’t wait to have that date with Tachanka. After all they went through, they deserved something good for a change, and in Kapkan’s opinion, this was the best that happened to him in years.

**Author's Note:**

> You can say hi and see what I'm currently up to on [my tumblr](http://r6shippingdelivery.tumblr.com/) or even on [my twitter](https://twitter.com/kikipeachywitch) !


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